


Fate and Happenstance

by FlorQuinnUwU



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst and Tragedy, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Eventual Relationships, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, F/M, Family, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Gen, Hosuh Lee Needs a Hug, Hurt/Comfort, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, M/M, Multi, Slow Burn, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Then It Gets Worse Again, but you won't regret this I swear, it's a roller coaster, that doesn't mean suffering won't exist tho, the drama doesn't exist here
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-18 06:07:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29238804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlorQuinnUwU/pseuds/FlorQuinnUwU
Summary: A small change can affect a whole future. What might have been a pre-determined fate can be altered with the slightest change of the wind, or a ripple in the water.But how about an appearance that wasn't expected before?Eren Yeager and the Scouts Regiment were given a task to break a mysterious crystal, trapping an individual inside. As it turns out, this individual may have something that they can all use to their advantage in this war against the titans.However, not everything is all as it seems. What changes will occur? Will fate be altered?How will things turn out, with a change that happened by chance?
Relationships: Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart, Daniel Lim & Elias Lim, Daniel Lim & Stephen Ng, Eren Yeager & Zeke Yeager, Hosuh Lee & Daniel Lim, Hosuh Lee & Daniel Lim & Stephen Ng, Hosuh Lee & Stephen Ng, Jay Ko & Daniel Lim, Jay Ko & Hosuh Lee, Jay Ko & Hosuh Lee & Daniel Lim & Stephen Ng, Jay Ko & Stephen Ng, Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss & Eren Yeager, Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir, Mikasa Ackerman & Armin Arlert & Eren Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman/Eren Yeager, Pieck Finger & Zeke Yeager
Kudos: 5





	1. A Crystal, Frozen in Time

Inside a huge crystal shining against the light in different colors, there was a fair-skinned silver-haired maiden. Her eyes were closed, expression pained and serene at the same time. She seemed to be frozen in time, slumbering her life away.

It was quite a huge shock to see this. An absolute abrupt sight, after everything they have been through recently.

After the terrible giant, the Colossal Titan, suddenly appeared and broke through Trost district as it did to Wall Maria 5 years ago, there were many lives that were lost. Mina, Marco, Thomas... many of their comrades have fallen in battle.

However, Eren was discovered to have the power to shift into a Titan. This was used to their advantage, though it did not go as smoothly as they had hoped when Eren suddenly lost control in that form.

Still, in the end, they were able to reclaim the land the Colossal Titan damaged with a huge boulder Eren used to seal it, which marked the first time humanity has won over their enemy.

This doesn't mean Eren was off the hook, though. The teen ended up in a trial that would determine his fate if he would be killed or be put into custody. Captain Levi had taken responsibility for Eren there, declaring that he would kill Eren himself if his titan loses control again. Therefore, Eren was accepted into the Scouts Regiment.

So, as you can see, a whirlwind of unbelievable events had happened.

Then, as Eren was still adjusting to everything, and as some of his friends followed him into the Scouts Regiment, a surprise was thrown in their direction.

That surprise was in the form of this; a girl inside a crystal, trapped frozen in time.

Among the ones residing in the new castle-like house, Levi and his squad, with Eren, Eld Jinn, Petra Ral, Oluo Bozado, and Gunter Schultz, were the first ones to see this.

"It's like a fairytale come true...", Petra murmured, kneeling down to trace the crystal in fascination. "What is this? Is the girl inside still...alive?"

"I doubt she is", Oluo scoffed. Petra gave him a look, to which he just replied with the raise of an eyebrow. "What?"

Levi then began to call attention to speak. "Regardless of whether the girl is dead or alive, we are _still_ tasked to break that crystal and free her. The Royal Government believes that Eren might be able to do it, using his Titan."

Silence.

"Captain?"

Levi turned to Eld with a deadpan stare.

Eld firmly stated something that's been bothering him. "What does the government want with this girl? And why weren't they able to free her before Eren and his ability came along?"

Petra and Eren shifted their gazes to Levi, curious for the answer.

Unfortunately, Levi looked down and pondered. "I don't know about any of that."

Eren looked down, too.

After a pause, he raised his head. "I'll do it."

The whole squad turned to look at him as the teen continued. "I'll free this girl."

Gunther narrowed his eyes at him. "Are you sure?"

Petra shifted uncomfortably in place, while Oluo, Eld, and Levi continued to level him with serious stares.

Eren met their gazes, face fixed in determination. "I _will_ do it."

The next thing Armin, Mikasa, and the others know, the senior scouts were towing out the huge crystal with the girl in it, and Eren was following right after. 

He seemed like he's being chewed out by Levi, though, so they held Mikasa back, and let it happen. It's not like they could stop it.

After Levi left, Eren went near the crystal. That was when Armin took the cue, and they all went to him. It was then that they saw the sleeping girl in the crystal, too.

"Woah...", Sasha stared in fascination, raising both hands like she wanted to hug the crystal whole. "Is this an illusion inside the crystal, or is this girl real?"

Mikasa gave Eren a questioning stare, which made Eren raise his fists. "I-I'm going to try--no, I _will_ break this girl free with my titan."

Jean and Connie gawked at him. Armin mulled over the words, gazing at the sleeping girl in the crystal. Reiner and Bertolt exchanged looks.

Meanwhile, Ymir raised an eyebrow. "How are you planning to do that? You turn into a titan...and then what?"

Eren looked down sheepishly. Admittedly, he didn't think that far ahead.

"Wait, this must be from the authorities, right?", Reiner brought up. "How haven't they freed the girl before you came along?"

"That's what Eld-san asked", Eren sweatdropped. "Captain Levi didn't have an answer."

A pause ensued, and Reiner hummed. "Huh..."

"You still didn't answer my question", Ymir crossed her arms. Christa glanced at her closest friend, before turning back to Eren with a gentle encouraging look.

It was rather unfortunate when Eren scratched the back of his head. "I... didn't think that far ahead."

If possible, Ymir's eyebrow raised even higher.

Mikasa turned to Armin, who finally gave his thoughts. "I think... if you pick up the crystal as a titan, and then you hit it hard enough in a hard surface in an end of the crystal, maybe the pressure will make the crystal break apart?"

There was a frown from Connie, turning to the blonde teen. "Yeah, but...what about the girl? Wouldn't she get hurt and fall if you do this?"

"It doesn't have to be a very high place", Armin pointed at the mountain situated at the side. "Maybe if Eren would just hit the crystal there, it would be enough."

The freckled stoic girl had an indecipherable look on her face, but Eren grinned.

So, after Mikasa told him to be careful, they gave him a wide berth as Eren got ready to transform. Levi and the rest of his squad stood close, ready to intervene if something happened.

Eren put his hand in his mouth and bit hard, drawing blood.

A second later, there was a powerful blast of wind. A glowing yellow light spread out the place. They all ducked and tried not to lose their footing.

Then, when the dust cleared, a looming figure with long hair, pointed ears, a hooked nose, and sunken eyes appeared. It had a muscular figure, standing in 15 meters, glaring down at the crystal below it.

It was Eren's titan, and they all stood back with bated breath, wondering what will happen.

Following Armin's suggestion, the titan picked up the crystal with one hand and went to the side of the mountain nearby as everyone followed. Then, using every bit of strength it has, the titan raised his arm holding the crystal, stretching the limb like a taut string, before making it violently crash on the mountain. Dust and a mound of land fell, covering their sight from both Eren and the crystal.

"O-oi!", Connie coughed, trying to shake the excess dust from him by waving his hand. "Be _careful_ , darn it!"

No reply. Only silence.

"Eren?", Mikasa's eyebrows furrowed. With trembling lips, she then stepped forward. "Eren!"

The rest of them stepped forward, too. Then, Eren's head popped up from underneath the soil. The titan stood back up, shaking the dirt off and staring down at them.

They all fell quiet.

Levi raised an eyebrow. "Well...?"

The titan looked back at the mountain, before looking at the crystal in his hand.

Which was completely undamaged.

The majority of the scouts gaped unbelievingly, and Sasha did not know whether to feel fear or wonder. "W-...woah..."

Reiner's eyes narrowed while Bertolt suddenly found his shoes disturbed from the dust.

The titan gave out a roar, clenching its hand down on the crystal. It didn't even put a dint onto it. Roar increasing in volume, Eren now used both hands in an effort to crush the crystal to no avail.

It was then that Eren's friends ran over to him, with Armin calling out. "Eren! It's enough!"

After all, if Eren did it like that, there's no telling that the crystal _will_ get crushed. And if it does, the girl inside might be crushed with it, too.

After much probing, Eren finally relented, setting the crystal back down on the ground. The teen came out of the titan's nape, Connie and Mikasa working together to pull him out, while the rest crowded around the crystal.

Shockingly, the crystal absolutely had no evidence of damage; not even a single scratch.

Jean felt hysterical laughter begin to bubble up his throat. "Un-unbelievable..."

Levi closed his eyes. "That's it, then."

Eren hung his head, dejected, while Mikasa rubbed soothing circles on his back made him feel better, somehow. Not like he could actually voice it out, though.

Deciding that they would continue to break the crystal some other time, they all went on about their business. Levi gathered all the other scouts, trying to discuss with them on the possibilities of how they could break it themselves.

For the others, they all gossiped about the whole spectacle, stealing glances at the crystal as it is towed back into the castle. Eren's group crowded around Eren when Mikasa set him down on the grass, and the teen groaned, plopping down to the ground and sprawled out.

A beat.

"Well", Connie winced, sitting down beside Eren. "That happened."

Mikasa sat beside Eren, who covered his face. "I thought I could do it..."

"Hey, Eren, it's okay", Armin put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "We don't know what the crystal is, either. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah!", Christa joined in with a grin. "No one knows what the crystal is, so...! It's totally okay that you weren't able to break it, Eren!"

Eren knows they were just trying to make him feel better, but they honestly just succeeded in making him feel worse. He groaned again, turning to the side to hide his face.

They all exchanged looks before Bertolt brought up. "What...is that crystal, anyway...?"

Sasha looked up. "I think it looked like those transparent vases I sometimes see in my hometown? You know, the expensive kind?"

Connie shot her a look. "I refuse to believe something so breakable could be what that crystal is made of."

"But it could be!"

"Or", Jean huffed. "It could be one of those things back in that ghost town, in Wall Maria."

That got Eren, Mikasa, and Armin's attention. The three of them turned to Jean, as Connie elbowed him. "What do you mean by that?"

"I've heard rumors about a town in Wall Maria that mysteriously disappeared in the middle of the night", Jean told them, like narrating a ghost story in the campfire. "No one knows what happened; just that, one day, all of them were gone. The houses were intact, but no one was there anymore. It was like they were all spirited away."

The teen with markings underneath his cheeks remembered. "Yeah, I've heard that."

It had been a story used to scare them off on wandering at night; mysterious beings who would just kidnap them if they wander for too long. What was remarkable was that...

" _Whatever_ took those people left behind these little crystals", Armin recalled, already shivering at the thought that the ghost story could be true. "That when reflected by the light of the sun, it would shine different colors. Like a rainbow...of sorts."

"Bingo", Jean snapped his fingers. "And I'm thinking that, _maybe_ , that giant crystal was one of those things left behind too."

They took a moment to sink that in.

Sasha screamed. "DOES THAT MEAN THE GIRL INSIDE THE CRYSTAL IS _SOME SORT OF MONSTER_!?"

She continued screaming as Eren pondered. "No...I don't think so. She seems pretty normal." 

"But looks _can_ be deceiving", Connie shot back with a pout.

"True."

Eren looked up at the sky to reflect on that. Christa ran over to Sasha to try and calm her down.

Just then, Christa realized something. "Wait, guys, where's Ymir?"

They all looked at her, before awkwardly glancing at each other.

Christa looked like she might burst into tears. "Did anyone see where she went?"

Before anyone could reply, they suddenly heard Ymir's voice in the direction of the entrance of the castle. "Everyone! Everyone, come quick!"

She successfully grabbed all their attention. Ymir motioned in the castle with a grim look. "The crystal. It just--it's _broken_."

Christa's eyes widened in shock, as did the others'. Eren abruptly sat up, feeling like he just got punched in the gut.

The clean freak captain then strode in immediately. "Let's see what will happen."

His squad followed right in dutifully. Then, with some reluctance, they all followed Squad Levi and Ymir in, nervous and uncertain.

After all, they had no clue. _What's going to happen now?_

==

When Squad Levi entered the room, they discovered that the crystal really is broken.

Pieces of the crystal laid about the floor and the silver-haired maiden, now out of the thing, was being gathered by two of the senior scouts.

When Levi's eyes fell on them, one of them reported. "Sir, we detected a heartbeat from the girl. She's alive."

Oluo gaped. Petra grinned, pleasantly surprised.

Eren couldn't take his eyes off the girl, in equal parts wonder and fear. He didn't know if the girl was a monster or not, and...

He just could not believe it. _The crystal broke?_

He felt someone slap his back, and he turned to glare at Jean, who chuckled. "Well, what do you know?"

Christa cheered the Titan soldier. "Congrats, Eren! You did it!"

Eren then responded with a smile awkwardly. "Ye-yeah..."

Ymir glared daggers at him though, and Eren does _not_ know how to feel about that.

There was something Connie noticed, however. "Why are you wearing a _mask_ , Ymir?"

Indeed, Ymir was wearing a black cloth over part of her face. Hence, she glared at him for noticing. "What? I _can't_ wear something I thought would look cool on me?"

"That's not what...", The teen with a buzz cut tried to give his piece, but gave up half-way. "Nevermind."

Gunther spotted a hole in the corner of the room, though. "Care to explain this?"

One of the senior scouts replied. "A titan suddenly appeared in this room, but it had already dug through the floor when we got in. It got away, sir."

"I see..."

Hearing that, Sasha shivered. "A-a titan got in?"

"It's probably an abnormal", Eren speculated, staring at Levi. "Plus, Captain Levi, Mikasa, and everyone are here. If it shows up again, we can just work together to defeat it."

Mikasa looked at Eren with a touched expression on her face. Jean scoffed bitterly. Ymir suddenly fell silent, strangely enough.

"It was weird that a titan suddenly appeared, though?", Christa brought up. No one noticed Ymir flinch as the thought entered their heads. "What did that titan want here?"

"Well, who knows with titans, right?", Ymir shrugged with a grin behind her mask, putting an arm around Christa. "Especially abnormal ones."

They had to admit that she does have a point. The blonde-haired girl giggled. "I guess."

"Oh!"

They suddenly heard Petra gasp, and they all turned back to the scene. The girl had been placed in a more comfortable spot on the floor, as Squad Levi and the rest of the scouts allowed to enter the room crowd around her.

Everyone had fallen silent in anticipation.

The girl was scrunching up her face, indicating that she was waking up.

Sasha couldn't resist squealing at the sight.

It was a small noise, but it got the silver-haired maiden to snap her eyes open, lurching forward with a gasp.

Petra didn't let the others get any closer while she carefully got as close as she assumes she was allowed.

Then, in a gentle voice, she prompted. "Are you alright, miss?"

The girl flinched. Then, slowly, she raised her head and met eyes with Petra.

There was a pause. And the girl opened her mouth. "N...not... _not_ miss..." 

"What…?" Petra leaned forth, as the girl's breath hitched to try and communicate.

"I'm…not a…girl…"

Silence.

And one of the other scouts' jaw dropped open. " _YOU'RE NOT A GIRL_!?"

The girl--no, actually, _boy_ , flinched, this time almost tearing up. Petra turned to the crowd behind them to glare protectively, just as someone else smacked the one that shouted at the back of his head. "Dude! Shut!"

The boy covered his face with his silver long hair with a small squeak, and it was then that they noticed that he was clutching something in his hands.

Oluo reached out to touch those hands--

Petra slapped his hand away with a stern expression on her face. Levi added on with one of his own.

Oluo huffed. "Alright, I'm sorry."

Satisfied, Petra turned back to the shivering boy before her and asked. "What's your name?"

The boy closed his eyes, lips trembling, as he held whatever he was holding close to his chest. They all waited patiently for the boy to gather his thoughts and emotions.

Eren and Mikasa slowly stepped in along with the others, careful not to startle the boy and step on the crystals. Ymir stared at the boy with an expression they could not name.

The boy looked back up, noticing the people behind Levi's squad. Christa waved encouragingly when their eyes met.

The boy tried to smile, before looking back down. Then, he unfurled his hands, and they not-so-subtly tried to see what his hands revealed.

They saw a pearl shell, tied to a snapped string. It looked a bit damaged, with part of it chipped off, but otherwise, it looked like it was well-preserved, like the boy they're looking at right now.

Furthermore, it looked like it was well-cared for. _Well-loved_.

"H...Ho...suh..."

They turned up to the delicate-looking boy, a bit confused. Connie spoke up. " _What?_ "

Jean smacked him for that.

A deep breath. The boy seemed to be trying to steel himself, before looking back up. Petra and the boy met gazes.

"H-...Hosuh", the boy's eyes were a bright shade of blue, as bright and clear as the sky. "M-my name is...Hosuh."


	2. Lost and Found, A Decision Born From Gratitude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hosuh tries to adjust to his new reality and come to terms with what he has lost.  
> And the scouts might gain a clue on why the Government wants to have him so much.

The silver-haired boy, Hosuh, was an odd presence. He was skittish, easily flinching at the slightest movement, and always trying to put his hair in front of his face to hide in a way whenever someone tries to approach him. Well, it was understandable he would be like this since he was in a new place facing new people and those same people are trying to erase his personal boundaries, but it really did create problems when they were all just trying to get to know the guy.

"He's definitely a monster", Sasha was convinced now. "Why else would he stay away from us? He maybe felt guilty that his...kind, or whatever he is, took a lot of innocent people."

Armin frowned, looking at the door to the room Hosuh locked himself in. "I don't think so...I think he's just _really_ scared."

After Petra saw him being overwhelmed by the others going near him, she managed to get everyone to let him have some space in the room. Hence, why Hosuh was alone in the room now while the rest of them are hanging out in the other rooms and minding their own business. Sasha's group was staying in the room across Hosuh's, which was mostly empty save for a bookcase that Jean was interested in. They were all sitting cross-legged on the floor, conversing.

"How else would you feel if you got trapped in some crystal for a long time", Jean huffed, slamming the book he had on his hands close. "And you wake up to these people going up to you and barely even giving you time to breathe?"

Sasha frowned, thinking it through. "You have a point."

From her spot beside Ymir, Christa stood up with a determined smile. "Then, let's just make him feel more welcome!"

"No, you'll just make it _worse_ ", Jean quickly shot that down.

Christa's shoulders slumped, disappointed. She sat down again, while Ymir pats her on the back as a way of casual comfort.

Eren sighed, glancing at Mikasa. The woman with the red scarf then stared back, before stoically turning back to the door.

At the same time, the door opened. Since their group's room is nearest to that door, Armin, Eren, Mikasa, Sasha, Christa, Ymir, Connie, and Jean turned.

Soft Sky Blue eyes peeked from a crack of the door before the door opened more. Silver hair fell all over his shoulders, with delicate features. Hosuh had a hesitant expression on his face, but he did meet Eren's eyes. He raised and waved a hand at them, with a small smile and a small voice, barely above a whisper. "H-hi..."

Everyone froze.

Surprisingly, Mikasa was the one to raise her hand. She obviously had something planned, however. "Hello. Did Sasha's fart catch your attention, enough to come here?"

Sasha abruptly stood, her face as red as a cherry. " _MIKASA...!_ "

Then, they heard a soft snort, followed by a giggle. The teens turned again, to Hosuh giggling and covering his mouth while he did so.

He looked back at them, sobered up from the amusement, and grinned. "I...did not hear a fart, but...that _is_ something, isn't it? Hehe...!"

Sasha screeched, mortified. Connie pats her in the back. Eren and Mikasa exchanged looks.

Then, Eren went forward and held out a hand for Hosuh to take. "I'm Eren. Hosuh, right?"

Hosuh studied Eren for a bit, his grip on the door tightening. They all waited for him to make a move.

Then, Hosuh gently stepped forward and grabbed his hand, shyly grinning. "Y-yeah...I was hoping someone can...sh-show me around? If that's okay?"

Silence. Then, Christa jumped up. "I'll be happy to do that!"

Now Ymir was glaring heatedly at Hosuh. Hosuh caught the glare and sweatdropped.

"Relax, Ymir, _all_ of us are showing Hosuh-san around", Eren compromised, before grinning at Hosuh. "So, shall we?"

Hosuh nodded, clearly at a loss on what to do. He bowed. "I-I'll be in your care, then...! Thank you!"

They all grinned at him, coming out of the room to start the impromptu tour.

Meanwhile, in another room near the stairs for the second floor, the whole Squad Levi was discussing what to do.

"Now that the person in the crystal is freed", Levi started. "We should decide what to do with him."

"Maybe we could just let him go?", Petra suggested. "He's been trapped in that crystal for so long, so...maybe he should have a chance to...you know. Adjust to this time?"

"I don't think that's possible", Eld interjected. "The Government might really have something they want with the kid."

Oluo recalled the way the boy trembled in front of them, and couldn't imagine it. "But _what_? What do they want from him?"

Levi sighed. "I don't know, but in the meantime--"

"CONNIE! SASHA! _DON'T_ \--"

There was a patter of feet across the hall, followed by unholy screaming which eventually got softer.

Silence.

Levi tried again. "In the _meantime_ \--"

A loud crash, followed by a thundering, " _YOU HEATHENS! GET BACK HERE!_ "

Levi's eye twitched, and he opened the door--

Only for a large can to hit him in the head.

Well, almost. Levi caught it in the nick of time, before glaring at all the people in front of him.

Connie and Sasha were coincidentally crouched in front of him. Sasha had some meat on her mouth. Eren, Mikasa, and Armin were a few feet away, holding back a senior scout from throwing any more metal cans.

Ymir was laughing at Connie and Sasha, with Christa unable to decide what to do and Hosuh next to her, hiding and couldn't understand what's going on.

They all froze when they saw Levi glaring at them.

When Levi turned his gaze to Hosuh, Hosuh squeaked and dove behind Christa, putting his hair in front of his face just as he did before.

Levi looked around again, and at the mess of things they made and hissed. " _Clean this mess up._ "

Then, he threw back the can, which Jean caught as he entered the scene.

Levi went back in the room and closed the door with a slam; a rather callous moment for the squad.

Meanwhile, out in the hall, everyone continued to freeze in place. That is until Connie brought up. "Well, it's a _great_ tour so far, right?"

Jean threw the can he caught at the small teen. It hit him square in the head. "Ow!"

Sasha laughed at Connie--

Only to have her cheeks stretched by Mikasa, who was pretty angry that they had to hold back another scout when they could have avoided this mess if Sasha had not stolen meat _again_. "Ow, ow, ow! Mercy, _mercy_ \--!"

Christa turned to Hosuh, who meekly replied. "Ye-yeah... it's a great tour so far..."

Ymir raised an eyebrow at him. "You're not just saying that to make them feel better, right?"

Connie and Sasha gasped, before turning to Hosuh, bearing almost puppy-like gazes.

Eren looked away. "Gah. I _don't_ want to see that."

Armin sympathetically pats him on the back.

Hosuh awkwardly smiled at seeing their puppy gazes, before looking down and nervously twirling his hair. "Yes. I...I really enjoy this so far..."

Connie and Sasha's eyes shone. "Hosuh-san...!"

"Huh", Ymir did not seem convinced. "Why?"

Hosuh looked down with a wistful smile on his face.

_"Hosuh! Hosuh, look!"_

_A purple-headed child led him in, with a pink-haired child smaller than both of them waving off to everywhere in the cottage._

_"Cozy, right?", the pink-haired child, embraced from behind by a timid girl, grinned as she waved her arms. "All of us live here, and this can be your home, too!"_

"Because it's..."

_"It's entirely your choice, though", a child with green hair entered his view, a shell necklace dangling from his chest. "You can go live with Uncle Asher or Uncle Carson, or whoever you want."_

_He was holding hands with a blue-haired child that has a heart locket necklace dangling in his chest parallel to the necklace of the other one._

_The green-haired child had a kind smile on his face. "Whatever you choose, you're part of the family!"_

"Because it just feels like", Hosuh laughed a little. "I'm with my family, you know?"

Christa and the others stared at him, concerned.

He didn't realize why they were staring at him that way until he brought a hand to his face and felt water streaming down. He realized that he was crying.

Startled at himself, Hosuh frantically tried wiping away his tears. Christa gently put a hand on his shoulder and hugged his back as he did so. "Ah, sorry, sorry-- I'm okay. I'm okay."

Eren pursed his lips.

Sasha looked down, before asking in a quiet tone. "Hosuh-san, just...where are you from?"

Hosuh looked at her. They all observed him, waiting for his answer.

The silver-haired teen fished out the shell necklace from earlier and kept his gaze on it, rubbing the shell absentmindedly. The string was still snapped, but it was obvious that Hosuh tried to tie it back together earlier and failed by the way the string's ends twisted.

Hosuh let out a breath. "I'm in Wall Rose right now, right?"

Armin nodded, answering for the rest of them.

Hosuh looked at them, tears now slowing down as he continued wiping them away. "I'm from the village Llyne, in Wall Maria..."

Jean winced.

The silver-haired teen frowned at his reaction. "Jean-san...?"

Jean looked at Eren and the others first, exchanging looks.

Mikasa nodded, while Eren shook his head, and Eren glared at Mikasa for her decision.

Mikasa remained unrelenting. The world is naturally cruel. Therefore, Hosuh must know what happened to his hometown.

Maybe that way, he can find a way to move forward.

It was left for Jean to make a decision, and his decision was this; "Hosuh-san, that village...village Llyne was _wiped out 15 years ago_. You were the only survivor left alive from there."

Silence.

"...what...?"

Jean looked up, and immediately wished he hadn't told him.

Hosuh had an absolutely horrified look on his face, his silver eyes losing it's light in them, and tears pouring back down in full force. His lips were quivering.

"N...no, that can't...", Hosuh tried to deny it, putting a hand to his mouth to keep from feeling sick. "That can't be true...I...my family, they...they're _stronger_ than that, I'm much weaker than them..."

Eren gave Hosuh a sympathetic glance. "N-nobody...no one was found. Not even bodies...only you, trapped in that crystal."

Hosuh's eyes widened, utterly horrified and shocked beyond belief.

Silence passed again.

And Hosuh backed away one step, two steps, and he whirled around and ran away from them.

"Hosuh-san!", Christa and Sasha chased after him, only to have the door slammed in their faces when Hosuh slammed the door behind him.

The two girls were left outside in worry, as everyone else went near. They heard muffled sobbing from the inside.

"Christa", Ymir put a hand on Christa's shoulder, who looked up at the taller girl. "We just dropped a bomb on him. He needs to take it in first, let him calm down on his own. Forcing ourselves in might make everything worse."

Christa's eyebrows furrowed, turning back to the door. "I...wish we can do more for him..."

"We will", Mikasa put a hand on Christa's other shoulder, ignoring the way Ymir glared at her. "Hosuh-san just needs time for now."

A pause ensued, and Christa nodded.

Meanwhile, Eren looked down while gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. _Whoever these b*st*rds that made those people disappear are...if I ever find them, I'll--_

"Eren."

Eren looked up.

Mikasa's calm yet soft expression somehow settled in him like bathing in warm water. It somehow soothed him, even if only slightly.

"Let's get some food ready", Mikasa offered to him, before turning to everyone else. "He might come out at night, so let's welcome him then."

They all collectively nodded. He was obviously a victim of some unknown tragedy, so the least they could do is make him feel better.

After all, they were scouts, the frontline soldiers of humanity. And they understood; losing a family is never easy.

So, helping him is the least they could do.

==

Well, that was their plan.

However, Hosuh didn't come out of his room that night, nor did he come out the next morning.

Christa was visibly worried, constantly trying to get her friends to allow her to check on him. Mikasa and Armin both thought it is best for Hosuh to just come to them on his own, so they didn't do anything. Petra just left Hosuh's breakfast for him outside the door given these circumstances.

However, by midday, the meal was still untouched and the door remained close shut.

Sasha's mind immediately drifted into the worst-case scenario. "Y-you guys don't...think he's dead, do you?"

It was understandable that Sasha would come up with the thought; the room was incredibly quiet since this morning, with no sobs or any sign of movement coming from the inside.

Ymir lightly knocked a fist on her head, earning a scolding stare from Christa and a squeak from the victim herself, which Ymir expertly ignored. "It could be, but that _honestly_ is just such a cowardly way to go."

"I-I wouldn't blame him, though", Armin nervously wrung his hands together. "Maybe it's also our fault that we didn't check on him, or something..."

"Okay, guys, _come on_ ", Jean spread his arms, even though he was panicking on the inside right now. "We can't be sure Hosuh-san is dead until we actually see the body."

Silence.

"So, what? Are we breaking into rooms now?", Ymir chuckled, crossing her arms. "Wow, how _noble_ of you to disturb someone's privacy, Jean."

Jean shot her a glare, which she avoided by turning her head back to the door.

"That person can't be dead", Levi's voice was heard, as the captain went to them. "We removed any kind of sharp materials in there, especially the remainder of the crystals that encased him before."

Levi stopped next to Eren and turned to him. "Now, we're soon going to have to start testing out your titan again, and Hange is coming over to help out. You ready to meet her?"

"Hange...?", Eren mumbled--

"W-Wait, wait...", Connie spoke up, addressing the rest of them. "Even if all sharp objects are removed, there's still the bedsheets right...? That can still be turned into rope and..."

Horrified silence.

"THAT'S IT, _WE'RE BREAKING IN!_ ", Sasha got ready to barrel herself to the door, if not for Jean and Mikasa to hold her back together. The rowdy brunette continued on her rampage. " _HOSUH-SAN!_ "

Ymir sighed, mumbling. "Connie only has a brain when it's for making situations worse, go figure."

Christa's vivid blue eyes locked a reprimand to Ymir, lightly elbowing her for her remark.

Sasha kept screaming and flailing. "HOSUH-SAN, _PLEASE_ DON'T BE DEAD, WE'RE GOING IN!"

She put all her body weight forward, and Jean and Mikasa both exerted force to send Sasha away. Sasha lost enough force on her effort, and it resulted in the three falling backward on top of each other, much to Ymir's amusement.

Levi pinched his nose in annoyance, going over to the door. Eren tried to call Levi out. "Captain--"

Levi gave the door a roundhouse kick, and it flew off the hinges and onto the far wall. There was silence.

...and the potato girl screamed again. " _AAAAAAAAAAA HOSUH-SAN GOT CRUSHED!!!_ "

The group flooded into the room, and to their relief, they did not find a silver-haired corpse.

Though they did find the bed neatly made, and the window near it wide open. This was interesting because that window was not supposed to be able to be opened. There were glass cracks in the edges, and they found some blood there, but other than that, it didn't really suggest that Hosuh killed himself or got hurt because of the door flying off.

Armin inspected the width and length of the now-open window before frowning. "I don't know how he broke the glass since there's not much furniture here aside from the bed--maybe he kicked it enough times until it broke--but this suggests that..."

Levi clicked his tongue, storming out the room."The guy escaped. Spread the word, have scouts find him, or else we'll get in trouble for this."

Christa stepped forward to their captain. "But--"

Levi gave them a scathing glare, and they immediately felt shivers down their spine.

That was why they all ended up going on a search for him. Eren was not allowed to go, since they still have to test his titan, but the rest of them get to roam around in search of the silver-haired teen.

They did not really take too many scouts, just 3 others in addition to the rest of their friend group, just so suspicions wouldn't arise and they won't have their backs watched on by hawks.

Sasha got some barbecue, too, so that was a bonus.

Of course, they have their ODM gear on, but they didn't plan to use it yet. If Hosuh sees them searching for him, he would most likely try to find a place to hide, and finding him will be a lot harder.

Somehow, Ymir and Mikasa ended up searching the same place together at some point. They didn't take the time to talk, since they didn't see the point in it and they still have to find Hosuh, but they did tolerate each other's presence.

 _At least until Mikasa goes off on her own soon_ , Ymir thought. _Like, really soon._

The streets were bustling with activity, with people walking down the streets by large groups, carriages driven by horses passing by, and it was noisy--

" _HOSUH!??_ HOSUH, IS THAT YOU _OH MY GOD_ \--"

"Pau--!?"

Mikasa and Ymir turned just in time for the very teen they were looking for being given a bear hug by a young adult with messy pink hair and moon-shaped glasses. Hosuh was wearing a hood that covers his head, and the two girls have no idea why they didn't see that before; that attire was definitely suspicious.

Then again, even when they were obviously _right there_ , Hosuh did not see them. Maybe it has something to do with the crowd in this street that made it hard for people to identify each other, or something like that.

Mikasa got ready to get him when Ymir held her back by a hand to the shoulder. "Mikasa, wait."

Because Hosuh's face had shifted from the shock when the young adult hugged him, to gentle relief. He hugged the woman back with a small smile.

Mikasa's face softened...

"Hosuh-san and this woman may have known each other before. We can find out more about him through this", Ymir told her, eyes trained on the pair ahead of them. "Come on, let's follow them."

Hence, follow the pair, they did.

They took great care not to be seen, blending with the crowd behind Hosuh and this woman, and being as silent as possible. By doing this, they got to hear some interactions when they got close enough.

"How have you been?", the woman greeted. "It's been a while. I-I thought you were dead..."

"Yeah, well, turns out I'm not", Hosuh quietly responded, keeping the hood up on his head.

"You don't look a day over 14, too! Oh gosh, what's your secret?"

"Being trapped in a crystal for years."

The woman stopped at that.

Ymir internally facepalmed. _Why would he even--_

"Hahahaha! Good one, Hosuh!", the woman pat Hosuh's back with a large grin. "Your jokes are improving! Stephen really had such an influence on you, huh?"

"Haha, yeah..."

They kept walking. Mikasa kept staring after them with a blank look on her face.

Ymir internally facepalmed. "Well, at least on the bright side, the truth is that absurd that there's _no way_ people will believe it unless they saw it with their own eyes. Let's get going."

They almost got separated at a turn, a dog almost ended up chasing them if not for Mikasa holding it down ("Geez, you didn't have to do that, we can just run away." "It never hurts to be cautious."), and almost got seen when Hosuh turned his head, but eventually, they managed to stay out of sight and got close enough to hear their conversation again. By then, however, the context was lost on them.

"--when I went by dawn with Bella, no one was there. The houses were empty, some were destroyed, and it looked like there was a raid from bandits, but there weren't any corpses", the woman, who they figured was Pau when Hosuh called her that earlier, explained. "The cottage didn't have anything left in them aside from the book you had from your biological family, and little Jamie. They're both hidden so well, I wouldn't have found them if Jamie hadn't started wailing."

Ymir and Mikasa got curious. _Jamie? Who are they talking about?_

"How is he?", Hosuh asked.

"Oh, he absolutely _hates_ you all right now. Thinks you guys abandoned him, and refused to listen to any explanation from Bella and me."

"I see..."

"What really happened, Hosuh? Do you know?"

Hosuh was silent. Mikasa and Ymir did their best to keep close, to hear his answer.

"No", his voice cracked when he finally answered. "No, I-...I don't..."

Pau closed her eyes. She put an arm on Hosuh's shoulder and gave him a side-hug. "It's okay, it's okay. I'm sure whatever happened, it wasn't your fault."

"N-no, it... it was...", Hosuh's voice was trembling now. The two girls managed to go to the side and saw him covering his face with his hair again. "If I'd have been stronger, faster... maybe I... I could have changed _something_..."

Ymir and Mikasa exchanged looks. Pau looked like she was about to cry.

"Ah, but, Hosuh", Pau tried to smile. "You know, _maybe..._ they're still alive out there. They just got out of that situation and are in hiding right now?"

Hosuh sniffed again, before showing something to her. Mikasa and Ymir immediately recognized the thing as the shell necklace Hosuh was always carrying around in his pocket.

When it was shown to Pau, she paled considerably. "O-oh..."

"Jamie still hates us, right?", they saw Hosuh's hand clenching down the shell in anguish. "If they were still alive, that hatred would have been _solved long ago_. There's no chance Dan wouldn't visit Jamie at least once if he was still alive... there's _no way_ they'd abandon me like this...you _know_ them, Pau. They would have stuck to my side while I was...trapped. They would have waited until I was free...!"

Pau looked down. Mikasa could glimpse Hosuh's tears falling freely down his face, his whole body trembling. Silence passed between the two.

"Th...the least I can do is fix the necklace", Pau gently took the shell necklace from him, soothingly rubbing his shoulder. "I know you hate empty apologies, so I'll just do this. Remember that you have a place in my home, okay? I have your back."

Hosuh despondently nodded, and the conversation ended there.

Mikasa and Ymir followed the pair to a homely house with a shop in it. Another woman with blue hair and an hourglass pin on her leaned down and hugged the silver-haired teen, continuing to hold him even as he broke down to the ground. Mikasa and Ymir debated going to the others to report this, but it was not long before Hosuh calmed down.

The blue-haired woman, who they learned has the name Bella, made Hosuh sit down on the couch nearby.

"Do you...want to meet Jamie?", Bella prompted. "He's 19 years old now, and is learning to be a doctor..."

Hosuh let out a weak chuckle. "A doctor...we really missed a lot. Dan would have been _really_ proud..."

Bella bit her lip, yet Hosuh smiled at her. "Thank you, but...I don't think it's the right time. Is that okay?"

"Of course. I'll get you something to drink."

With that, Bella left him to his spot on the couch, with the round table in front of him. It gave way to an opportunity, and Ymir decided to take it.

She stormed into the shop with a slam on the door, startling Bella and Hosuh out of their places. She gave Hosuh a sharp smile. "You're here! Come on, let's go!"

She didn't even allow Hosuh to speak when she pulled him out of his seat and out of the shop, and Hosuh was left to hurriedly wave at Bella and Pau while he was dragged back. Unable to do anything else, Bella and Pau waved back in confusion.

Mikasa briefly turned to bow at them, saw the book in Pau's hands, and paused.

Pau blinked. "Oh, you're another one of Hosuh's new companions?"

Mikasa nodded after a brief gust of quiet.

Pau gave the book to her with a melancholic smile on her face. "This is Hosuh's book. The string will take a while, so he has to come back here later. Please...let him come back."

Hesitantly, Mikasa took the book. Then, she nodded at her. "I'll see what I can do."

And she ran after Ymir and Hosuh, with the book in her hand.

==

Ymir dragged Hosuh in a separate alley without anyone there, pulled Hosuh close to her, and got ready to use her ODM gear--

"W-wait!" Hosuh crouched and got away from Ymir's grip, backing away slightly.

Ymir raised an eyebrow, annoyance clear in her features. "What? You're already causing so much trouble by being here. Don't you know you're not supposed to sneak off?"

"I-I know, but..."

Mikasa suddenly ran in, skidding to a stop right next to Hosuh. She handed the book to him.

"Th-thanks", Hosuh gave her a grateful smile, opening the book. "Can I-can I ask what Pau said about the necklace?"

"She said that it will take a while with the string and that you should come back later."

"Ah", Hosuh nodded absentmindedly, flipping the pages. "She'd most likely replace the string, then--"

A piece of paper fell from between the pages. Hosuh leaned down to grab it, but Ymir was faster, snatching it from Hosuh to look at it. On seeing the contents, she blinked in surprise.

"What is it?", Mikasa took a peak.

The piece of paper seems to be a small sketch portrait of a painting. It showed a picture of a family.

There were two boys who looked really similar; one had messy hair with bangs swept to the side, while the other had his bangs covering his eyes. The former had a bright grin on his face, while the latter seemed pretty stoic, yet there was a small quirk on his lips. Behind the one with the side-swept bangs, there was a pretty tall boy with a mischievous grin and a mohawk. Beside him is a petite girl with jaw-length hair and level bangs. She had a hand on a smaller girl's shoulders, one with the same bangs as her and pigtails. They had eager grins on their faces.

Behind the one with his eyes covered, there was a spiky-haired boy with eyes closed, smiling serenely. He had a hand on a younger version of Hosuh, with hair all over his face and a giddy smile on his lips. Behind all of them, were two adults. One had shaggy short hair, and the other had slicked-back hair. The former had a smug smile on his face, while the other had a pout yet his eyes tell that he was content there.

Mikasa and Ymir looked at the portrait, caught off guard. Suddenly, Hosuh snatched the paper out of their hands, backing away from them with it like a cornered rabbit. The two girls blinked.

Hosuh slowly looked down, opening the book, and slowly returning the paper in between the pages. After a pause, Hosuh explained. "This is...a sketch I made, back then. I drew my...my family."

Mikasa and Ymir exchanged looks. The former tried to make Hosuh feel better, fearing that she might have crossed a boundary. "You...draw really well."

Hosuh looked up at her and was silent for a moment. Then, he smiled a little. "Th-thank you."

Mikasa nodded at him. Ymir sighed. "Hosuh, just _why_ did you come here?"

Hosuh looked at her, confused.

"Why did you sneak off?", Ymir clarified. "Why did you run away from the base, and went out into town?"

Hosuh looked down, absent-mindedly twirling his hair with his index finger. "I... I don't know. The second I found out that...that I was probably the only one who remained, while everyone else went missing...well, it just felt like my world crumbled under my feet. You know...?"

Ymir kept her gaze on the book in his hands. "Yeah...yeah, I get it. Sort of."

After a tone so forlorn from Ymir when she spoke, Mikasa eyed at her solemn visage in gentle pondering.

"Being trapped in the room and knowing that people outside are waiting for me while I wasn't ready to face anyone...I guess I just lost myself for a bit", Hosuh rubbed his arms. "I just felt myself move, and the next thing I knew, I was out into the open from the room's window, and that I was running to who knows where."

He looked up. The sky was clear and blue. The world continued to turn, even when the people who deserve to be here, the people so beloved, no longer are.

"My feet just took me to this town, and I decided that I should just do something while I'm here. I snagged this cloak and did what I had to do. I didn't even know Pau was here...though it was a good thing."

"Because you got your book back?", Ymir guessed.

Hosuh gave a lopsided smile. "Well, yeah, and also...so that I can fix the necklace."

The Ackerman bowed, rethinking about that certain intent. "If that was your purpose, you could have just asked one of us to fix it for you."

Hosuh sweatdropped. "Yeah... sorry. As I said, I wasn't thinking clearly."

Then, he stood. The girls stared after him as he stretched before declaring, "But now, I think I've decided."

Ymir gave him a look of suspicion. "What?"

Hosuh grinned at her, before fishing out something from his pocket. He held it up for Mikasa and Ymir to see.

It was a glass bottle, with a cork on its lid to keep the contents from falling out. The content is a sort of liquid material, colored light blue from the end and blending with the light yellow on the top.

"This was what I figured I'd do while I'm here", Hosuh gently shook the bottle, and the liquid moved with the movement.

Mikasa stared up at the bottle, astonished. "What...is that?"

"I had this with me when... when I woke up again. The original container was cracked, so I figured I should get a new container for it", Hosuh put the bottle back in his pocket. "I was supposed to use this to...to save the others. To save my family. But, as you can tell..."

"You failed?", a blunt finish from Ymir.

Hosuh winced. "Yeah. But now...I think I can do something. This is the least I can do for you guys...as thanks for saving me."

A beat.

"Where was that?", Mikasa was curious. "We didn't see it when you..."

"Ah, well", Hosuh waved his arms frantically. "It was there on the floor...I picked it up before the room was cleared of the crystals. I noticed that the previous container was transparent...and the contents blended well with the crystals, so maybe that's why..."

Mikasa frowned. That _did_ make sense.

"You didn't answer Mikasa's question, though", Ymir pointed out. "What _is_ that?"

Hosuh paused, before holding up the book's cover to them. The book looked like a medium-sized leather book, just without the string to bind them together. "Before I answer, um...I've asked around, and...I learned about the titans and the situation. I hope that...you guys are alright."

Mikasa looked down. After a bit, she nodded. "I am alright, at least. Eren and Armin are still alive."

Ymir looked down with an indecipherable look on her face.

"That's great, then", Hosuh smiled, putting the book down to open it again. "But okay, to answer your question..."

The next words that came out of the silver-haired teen's mouth seemed so absurd to Mikasa and Ymir that they had a hard time believing it.

"What if I told you that...this can turn Titans into humans?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you all expect that? Hope you guys enjoyed it!
> 
> If you guys did and are looking forward to more, please leave a kudos and a comment! I would really love your feedback and talk to you guys ^v^
> 
> See you all in the next chapter!


	3. A Will to Fight, A Horrible Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The scouts get their hands on things that can turn the tides of the war...as well as a potentially horrible truth.  
> Hosuh tries to remember something he couldn't and later discovers just what exactly happened to his family and the citizens of his town.

Eren didn't get why the rest of Squad Levi left the room when he agreed to listen to Hange about the titans and the experiments.

_It's not like it's boring or anything, right?_

Well, it probably is, but _come on_. They're in a world where knowledge about these things is as valuable as it is reliable. Surely, it wouldn't be that bad, would it?

"Well, in that case, I'll tell you all about it", Hange's eyes shone with excitement. "This isn't the first time we managed to capture titans alive, so we already knew what to do."

Eren hummed.

"First, we started with the same experiment that we've conducted to five others in the past. That is, ' _an attempt at establishing communication_.' Unfortunately--"

Suddenly, the door opened again. Levi's face was seen, glaring at them both.

Eren shivered, but Hange had a bright look on her face. "Ah! Levi! Do you want to--"

"No, I _don't want_ any part of it", Levi quickly dismissed that, before casually throwing a look at the side...with an obscure but clear intent. "But I think this fellow here might have a few words to share that you will be interested in."

And he stepped aside, revealing Hosuh as he timidly walked in with a leatherbound book in hand.

"U-um. Hi...", he smiled nervously, hiding behind his book this time instead of his hair.

Hange's smile brightened--

"Hosuh-san!" But, it was Eren who abruptly stood, quickly walking over to the teen and giving him a quick check. "Hey, are--are you okay?"

Hosuh glanced at Eren, searching his face for a bit. Then, he looked down, clutching the book tighter. "S-sorry to have worried everyone..."

Then, he looked back up with a passionate gleam in his poise. "Bu-but I...! I think I have something I can help with to everyone here!"

Eren caught his breath as he surveyed the ambiance, while Hange kept her smile, though she didn't quite anticipate such a behavior.

"I'm bringing the Commander here to look at it tomorrow", Levi began to turn to his own business as he intercalated. "But for now, this headache wants to talk to you guys. Especially you, Hange, since you're so passionate with titans and all this."

Hange dramatically gasped before suddenly going up near the timid Hosuh with a large grin. "Hey, I'm Hange! You want to know about the experiments and all the other discoveries too!?"

Hosuh was taken aback by this overwhelming burst of energy. The young cadet near them, Eren tried to reach out. "Uh, Hange...I think you're kinda scaring him..."

The woman with glasses blinked. She abruptly backed away with a sheepish smile, quickly apologizing for the abrupt move.

Hosuh still stood in place, holding up his book for the next time Hange will invade his personal space, much to Eren's concern.

"Well, I'll leave you to it", Levi announced, before leaving as he closed the door behind him. They weren't even able to get a word in before the door closed shut.

A minute passed, with them blankly staring at the door.

Then, Hange whips back to Hosuh with a bright grin. "So!"

Hosuh steps back, putting the book in front of him like a shield, and fearing what comes next with this particular individual.

Hange still took one step forward, which made Hosuh back all the way to the wall with the book still outstretched like a shield. Eren shook his head.

Then, remembering what Hosuh said, he asked. "Oh yeah, what did you say about something that can help everyone here?"

Hosuh blinked. Then, he put the book close to his chest. "Well...it's this..."

The two brought their gaze at the book on Hosuh's chest. Hosuh took a deep breath before he gathered all his courage and stepped forward. "Can we sit in the table?"

So, they sat on the chairs facing the table, and Hosuh put the book in front of them. Hange sat on his right side, Eren on the left, and Eren had to keep reminding Hange not to lean too close to Hosuh or he would freak, much to Hange's awkward embarrassment.

Hosuh opened the book, and then his demeanor shifted to a serious and calm one.

It was clear he was still nervous, though, judging from how he's speaking. "Thi-this is the book I retrieved from...the village nearby, with its writings preserved and copied from passage to passage regarding the details of Titans from the people who dealt with them in the past."

Hange leaned over immediately after the mention of the prominence of Titan Science. Though... "Are you sure this is the real deal? That could be some sort of scam from someone as a gag or something..."

Hosuh glanced at her and sheepishly smiled. "No, it's really not a scam. Um..."

He explained that the books came from Ancient Royalties in hiding, who sought to open the key to turning Titans back to what they once were.

This was interesting and all, but Eren was still confused about it. "What _were_ they before they're...you know, _man-eating monsters who need to die_?"

Hosuh winced.

Hange nodded. "Yeah! What _were_ they? Ooh, I'm hoping to see some adorable _baby_ titans!"

The silver-haired teen sweatdropped. "But they don't have any reproductive organs..."

Eren chuckled. "I think we'll find some titan babies soon, Hange-san, don't worry. If we explore the outside world more, maybe we'd find them underneath rocks or something."

Hange squealed--

"Um. I-I think it's a great thing", Hosuh turned to a page and gazed at the illustration of a disfigured titan in it. "But...I don't think baby titans exist...at least, unless they come from babies, but..."

"Woah, _woah_ ", Eren grabbed the teen's shoulder, prompting Hosuh to look at the titan shifter. "What do you mean?"

A brief pause.

"The titans", Hosuh spoke softly, observing their reactions. "The-they come from...from humans, who are injected by a serum that turns them to these monstrosities."

Silence. Hange and Eren froze in place, before slowly looking at each other. Now, they found themselves challenging this.

"A serum...that changes humans into Titans...?", Hange put a hand on her chin. "It seems far-fetched.."

Eren glanced at Hosuh. "Did it say something like that in the book?"

Hosuh squirmed, half-heartedly flipping the pages with one hand. "Well, no, but..."

"Then, that's just pure speculation!", Hange pat Hosuh's back, strangely more enthusiastic than normal. "It's a good hunch, but _hey_ , let's _not_ hope it's real, okay?

"Hange-san--"

"Now, what if they _did_ come from baby titans--"

"Hange-san, _I know what I saw_!"

Eren and Hange flinched, taken aback. They're both caught off-guard by this burst of irritation from the otherwise timid boy.

Even Hosuh himself was surprised by his outburst, for he immediately backed away from them while covering his mouth with both hands.

Silence passed again.

"I...I'm...I'm sorry, I...", Hosuh quickly picked up the book and zoomed sideways, getting near the door and away from both of the scouts in the room "I...I ha-have no right to do that. It's my fault, a-and I hope you can forgive me. But...I think I can prove it to you guys...and make things right...if you just let me demonstrate it to you, you can understand...or. Something..."

A heavy and despondent burden reeked from the way he faltered, as he gently closed the book in his grip. Hosuh bowed lower. "I'm _really_ sorry. I-...I'll leave now."

There was no word uttered, as it was frozen frigid by their throats. The warmth of the lights didn't help one bit for it was too dim, and it was as though the trembling of the flames displayed their ache for a voice from any of the three.

"Thank you for your time", the regret and wariness were still present in Hosuh's voice as he placed the book close to his chest with a grip not as tight in fear or passion. He then turned to leave Hange and Eren on the table with as much grace as he could muster.

"We'll figure this out, Hosuh."

An unusual solemnity was sensed from Hange's voice as she looked down on the locks of her fingers. Eren gave Hosuh a reassuring gaze.

Hosuh could only manage a slight nod in response before he left the room, leaving a burdening quiet at his departure.

Eren and Hange stared after the door for a while.

Then, Eren started to ponder. "So, titans are...they come from..."

It was jarring if that really _is_ real. That meant that this whole time, they were...they were killing _people_.

The monster who killed his mom was _human_.

He didn't know what to feel. Of _course,_ he doesn't, this whole thing is just making him feel dizzy and like the whole world turned upside down on him.

Hange gave out a huff, before grinning, back to her usual chipper self. "Hey, come on now! You and Hosuh are checking out the experiments tomorrow, right!? So, it's going to be fine!"

Eren appreciates her enthusiasm, so he managed a smile. "If Hange-san says that, then I guess so..."

They fell into a comfortable silence again.

"Ah, wait", Eren perked up. "Did we ask Hosuh if he's free to see the experiments?"

Hange screamed. "Oh, _shoot_!"

With that, they scrambled to the door, determined to find the silver-haired teen that was once there.

==

_"Geez, kid", the messy blonde hair and patient eyes were the first things he saw before a hand put itself on top of his head. "You're so messy. Wouldn't your siblings be mad at you for this?"_

_Hosuh, aged about 9 years, puffed out his cheeks. Sure he was covered in mud, but! But he found a cute cat!_

_Everyone would love a cute cat! Everyone would be so happy! Because it's...it's...!_

_Another voice piped in. "Huh, the cat is practically covered in mud. Hosuh-chan is too."_

_Hosuh turned with a pout, seeing a man with slicked-back hair kneel down on his level._

_"That looks uncomfortable", the man with slicked-back hair gave a devilish grin while he ruffled Hosuh's hair. "Wouldn't it be better to get cleaned up?"_

_Hosuh hummed. The mud really does stick to him so much. It's getting annoying, too, since it makes him feel much heavier than usual._

_But!_

_"I found a cat!", Hosuh held up the cat to the adult crouching, and the cat let out a small meow. "Uncle Carson, I found a cat!"_

_The man, Carson, blinked, before sweatdropping._

_The man with the blonde hair walked over to both Hosuh and Carson. "Well, we still can't have you and the cat go in the cottage like that now, can we?"_

_Hosuh frowned, but he did agree. If he went home to the cottage like this, Elias will freak and he'd throw Hosuh out until Hosuh cleaned himself, so..._

_Putting the cat over his shoulder, Hosuh held out his arms to the blonde man. "Uncle Asher, up! Up!"_

_The blonde man, Asher, blinked. Then, he chuckled and picked the child up, not minding the fact that the mud is getting on his clothes._

_Hosuh got himself settled in Asher's arms when Carson walked over to him and booped him in the nose. "Now, I'm taking you to the lake!"_

_Hosuh gasped. The lake! Not the lake!!!_

_"Uncle Asher!! Don't let the ugly hippo man take me to the lake!", Hosuh shrieked, almost dropping the cat from how much he was flailing. "It's too cold in there!"_

_Asher snickered._

_"Oi, who are you calling ugly hippo man!?", Carson demanded, stretching Hosuh's cheeks. The child squirmed at the action. "Don't be like that purple-haired brat! Respect your elders, young man!"_

_Asher fell into laughter, and Carson whirled to him. "Asher, stop laughing! You're supposed to be on my side here!"_

_Asher ended up laughing harder. Hosuh laughed, too._

\--a ring of a small bell snapped Hosuh back to reality.

"Reminiscing memories, Hos? You look like those depressing protagonists from fantasy books, but", Bella asked, looking at where he was looking at, which would be two adult men accompanying two small children. She smiled fondly. "I get that. Though, you still need to finish your drink!"

Hosuh giggled. "I know, Bella. Thanks, by the way." 

The blue-haired girl winked, before going to attend to the other customers she has that sat on the tables around him.

He was back in the shop Bella and Pau have together. He managed to convince Ymir and Milasa to take him there, so he can get back the necklace.

He didn't know where the two girls went after dropping him off here, but hey. At least this time, he could have his drink and actually enjoy it.

The shop was homely, bustling with activity as Bella serves the customers that went through the door. Pau was somewhere upstairs, where their actual home must be, and Hosuh was nervous for her going downstairs to give the necklace back. _Was she able to fix it?_

The chair he's sitting on was comfortable, though, like sitting on a cloud. It's perfect for sipping his hot tea. Bella has always been the best at making these drinks...

His vision returned to the two adults with their children he was watching through the window. The adults both looked like they're in their mid-20s, with the children being very much toddlers. They both had smiles on their faces as they both grabbed a teddy bear.

The taller adult frowned, seemingly mourning the loss of money he would have when he buys the bear. The smaller one just giggled, while the two children looked at their guardians with huge grins on their faces.

Hosuh couldn't help but smile at the sight. They just looked so cute.

Then, that smile disappeared. Stirring his drink with a spoon, Hosuh allowed himself to be honest.

He missed his family. Not the biological one that abandoned him and left him this book, but the one that took him in. He missed the people he calls siblings. He missed Uncle Asher and Uncle Carson.

He missed...he missed her...

The family of four disappeared out of view. The silver-haired teen took that as a signal to look around for Pau and Bella. Bella was still serving customers, but where _is_ Pau?

The whole shop was still incredibly busy. There were lots of smiling and pleased faces as the customers consumed Bella's drinks. Hosuh was pretty proud of his friend to have a business this great.

Then, he caught sight of pink hair as a woman with glasses came to his table. The silver-haired teen waved at her, relieved. "Hey, Pau!"

"Hey", Pau grinned, before tossing him something. "Here, this was a pain to fix."

Hosuh caught it in his hands, to which it was revealed to be the shell necklace that was in his hands when he woke up.

The string was fixed with no sign of it snapping in the first place, and the chipped-off part of the shell wasn't fixed but it was made smooth on the edges of the chipped part to avoid accidental injury.

"The shell is rare, so I can't exactly cover it unless we can find a similar shell", the woman explained, sitting next to him. "But I did my best. What do you think?"

A smile spread its way into his face, as he put the necklace close to his chest. "Thank you..."

Pau smiled. "You're welcome."

They just stayed together like that for a bit, relishing in the mundane silence between them as their surroundings went with their business.

Then, Hosuh spoke. "It feels strange...I'm still a teenager, while you guys are...how old are you and Bella again?"

Pau raised an eyebrow. "Hos, you _shouldn't_ ask a lady her age. It's disrespectful!"

A sweatdrop. "S-sorry."

"Eh, it's alright", Pau giggled, before her gaze fell on the tea on the table. "Hm, let's see...I was 15 back when you guys, uh...disappeared, and it's 15 years since then, so...I'm 30 years old right now. Bella's 29."

 _A lot of time really passed while I was trapped in there..._ , Hosuh looked down. "I see...thank you."

"You're...still 14, right?"

"Yeah. I don't feel or look any older..."

" _How is that even possible._ "

Hosuh shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe some sort of miracle or something. Haha!"

Pau chuckled a little. Then, a pause.

"So, you _really_ don't remember what happened, Hos?", the woman asked, eyebrows furrowed. "I was hoping that I'd get answers from you. You know...since you're the one who actually lived in Llyne...Jamie doesn't remember much that day, since he was hidden the whole time, but..."

"I know, but...I think...", Hosuh bit his lip. "I don't..."

**_A feeling of falling to ■■ before a hand grabbed him by the arm. The world was shaky, and they're ■■ ■■■ ■■■■■ of ■ ■■■■■._ **

**_His messy purple hair and terrified eyes were the only things he could see. The other teen tried a smile. "Hosuh, you're ■■■ ■■■■■■■--you're okay--"_ **

A sharp sting on his lip, but Hosuh barely noticed. Pau sat up straighter. "Hosuh--"

_I should have done more I should have done more I--_

His eyes grew blurry. He found it hard to breathe. "I..."

Regret and terror, a feeling of incompetence and grief. That's what's left in his head from...whatever happened.

And these--

_**He placed his hand on top of Hosuh's outstretched one.** _

_**His green hair swaying in the wind, he gave a small melancholic smile. He mouthed the words, '■■ ■■■■■.'**_

_**And he ■■■■■■ ■■■■, leaving the shell necklace and took one step, letting ■■■■■■■ ■■■■--** _

" _HOSUH_!"

Hosuh's eyes snapped back, meeting Pau's concerned ones. Her hands were on his shoulders, gripping them firmly.

"Stop that", Pau told him in a stern voice. "You don't have to force yourself to remember. It's _okay_."

Hosuh blinked. He looked at his hands and with a start, he realized that he had been crying. His lip is bleeding, too.

Pau gave him a once-over and sighed. She looked at Hosuh straight in the eyes, a sheepish smirk on her face. "It's that horrific, huh?"

Hosuh frowned. He...really doesn't know. It bothers him a lot.

"Don't worry about it", Pau pat him on the back. "But anyway, let's chat for a bit! Who knows when those psycho scouts come back to drag you away again!"

Hosuh laughed. The woman smiled, before turning to shout at Bella. "Hey, Bella! Give me one of those milkshakes!"

Bella blew her a raspberry. "You have to pay if you want it!"

"Wh- _hey_! I'm your partner in this business, you can't do that!"

"It's my drinks! So, I _can_!"

Pau screeched, betrayed. Hosuh laughed harder.

He was really glad that he came here.

==

Hosuh might have shown a bit of bravado back there with Eren and Hange, but now all of that was completely gone when he ended up here.

An intimidating man with blonde hair and stern eyes was looking down at him. If Hosuh wasn't sitting down, he would have passed out on the floor from the intensity of the stare.

And he just came back with Mikasa and Ymir from his friends' shop, so he was _totally_ unprepared for this.

"Hi, Captain Erwin!", Hange wasn't helping with her overly-enthusiastic greeting. "Meet Hosuh-san!"

Hosuh put the book to hide his face again--

Yet, a hand fell on his shoulder.

He whirled, meeting eyes with Eren. Eren leaned in, whispering. "It's okay. I know it's scary...heck, I'm scared, too. But...this is your chance, maybe your _only_ chance if you want to help. You have to do it, so _fight_!"

Hosuh's eyes widened.

_"It's okay to be scared", a bright smile from a normally-timid girl with jaw-length hair. "What matters is what you do with that fear. Do you let it consume you, or do you use it to your advantage?"_

"Fight on", Eren repeated. "Okay?"

Hosuh strangely felt his heart steadying. The fear was still there, but its screams gradually decreased in volume.

_Fight. I'll choose to fight._

Giving a small nod to Eren, Hosuh turned back to the scary man in front of him with the most composed face he could muster.

He might not be like Stephen, who absolutely gives no f**ks about anything. 

He might not be like Dan, who could handle and get along with all types of people.

But he _could_ be someone who doesn't give in to fear. Who chooses to use fear to his advantage.

That was what Hosuh chose, to fight on. "Nice to m-meet you. Captain Erwin, right?"

There was a brief flash of surprise from the intimidating man, but it was gone the next second. Erwin nodded. "Yes. And your name is Hosuh?"

"That's...that's right."

Eren and Hange exchanged excited looks. They were worried since Hosuh seemed to back away from any type of potential threat. But this...

"I was told that you have information regarding the titans", Erwin recalled. "May I have it?"

Hosuh blinked, before looking at the book in his hands. His grip was tightening, and he was visibly biting his lip so hard that it might bleed.

Yet, Hosuh handed the book over to Erwin. "Y-yes, uh, here it is. And...I have another thing that can help."

"Oh?"

Hosuh breathed out, and with one swift move, he fished out a glass bottle filled with blue-yellow liquid. Erwin, Hange, and Eren looked at it with interest.

"I can sh-show you all that it does", Hosuh told them. "If you just let me demonstrate it."

There was silence.

"But Hosuh", Hange brought up. "Are you _sure_ it can work? You've been in that crystal for a while, from what I heard..."

Hosuh shifted his feet, keeping his gaze down. "That...might be true. I'm not even sure if this will really work. But..."

He looked back at Eren, who leveled him with an expectant gaze.

_Fight on._

"We won't know", Hosuh smiled softly. "Until we try. Right?"

Eren blinked. Then, he grinned brightly.

Erwin gave Hosuh a once-over and closed his eyes. "Very well. I will inspect this and present the book for your case in the trial."

And instantly, with just a single word, Hosuh's courage was stripped away. "Wh...what...?! Tri-trial?"

"Hange will let you test and study the titans in the meantime."

Hange's grin was brighter than ever. "Yes, _sir_! Hosuh-san, let's go!"

Hosuh was as pale as a ghost as he was dragged away. " _Trial_!? Ha-Hange-san, what--"

As they went their way, Eren looked at Erwin. The teen dutifully gave him the soldier's salute.

Erwin responded in kind. "For the future of humanity."

Eren had a determined glint on his face as he took off the fist from his chest. Then, he turned around to follow Hange and Hosuh to where they're going, with Erwin watching after them.

Then, when Eren was out of sight, Erwin gazed back at the book with a thoughtful look on his face.

After a moment's hesitation, he opened the book on its first page.

==

There were... _so many people_...

He could handle the town since it seems more like back home, but this...with so many people wearing ODM gear and crowds walking around...

 _Okay, that's it_ , Hosuh thought as they approached the site where these captured titans are supposedly held in. _I am going to stay inside this carriage until they bring me back. I'm not dealing with people. Nope. Not today._

But when he turned and met Eren's stare, he strangely found himself going against that plan.

_Fight on._

Hosuh looked down at the serum in his hands. _I have to fight on._

He clenched his hand down at it.

_So I can do what I need to do. So I can pay back the people who helped me._

Just then, Hosuh felt the carriage stop. They had arrived.

Hange practically kicked open the door with as much vigor as a gerbil. "Hello, everyone! I'm back, Sawney and Beane!"

She ran out of the carriage, practically tackling the people who came to meet her halfway.

Beside him, Eren let out an awkward laugh. "Hange-san really is so enthu--oh! Wait, look, it's--"

Eren peeked out the door with a wide grin, catching the attention of a blonde girl with blue eyes with her hair having messy bangs and a messy bun on her head. "Hi!"

Annie looked at him, before raising a hand as a greeting. "Hey."

Beside her, Eren also caught another blonde's attention, too.

"Annie, Reiner!", Eren got off the carriage, smile even brighter. "What are you guys doing here?"

Hosuh peeked out as Annie and Reiner got close. He and Annie's gazes met, and Annie practically _froze_ at the sight of him.

Hosuh was confused at that. Feeling self-conscious, he started to search his clothing to see if something is out of place for her to act like that.

Meanwhile, Reiner had an eager grin on his face. "We just want to see how this whole thing goes! You know, since this is such a big thing for us?"

He glanced at Hosuh as the silver-haired teen caught the stare and immediately hid. Since Reiner wasn't there much for Hosuh to get used to him, Hosuh was still scared of him. So...

Reiner went over to the silver-haired teen and held out a hand, giving him a brotherly smile. "Come on. You have something to do, right?"

Hosuh blinked. "How do you..."

The muscular brotherly blonde shrugged. "Eh, well, word goes around."

Annie sheepishly rubbed her arm for a bit, before turning. "We should go."

After a moment's consideration, Hosuh took his hand and Reiner led him in the base inside the thin makeshift walls, curious of what is behind it.

Eren is following after--a strange reassuring presence.

Hosuh wondered what he would find in there. _Hopefully, there's not many people insi--_

He dropped the serum in his hand. It was fortunate that Eren lunged and caught it just in time.

Eren made sure to check that there are no cracks on the container, before turning to return it to Hosuh. "Hosuh-san, why did you just--"

Eren faltered. He only managed to feel a fault on his ribcage. Near them, Reiner looked at the silver-haired teen in concern, while Annie refused to meet anyone's eyes.

Hange came over to them. "Hi! Meet Sawney and Beane--Hosuh-san? Are you alright?"

Hosuh, staring blankly, couldn't take his eyes off the two titans. He wouldn't.

He wanted this to be a dream.

He wished this to be a dream.

_"Well, we still can't have you and the cat go in the cottage like that now, can we?"_

Haha.

_"Oi, who are you calling ugly hippo man!? Don't be like that purple-haired brat! Respect your elders, young man!"_

Hahaha.

"Ha... _haha_...", Hosuh backed away a step, grabbing his hair so hard he could just tear it out. "This is...this is a _joke_...this is such a..."

"Hosuh...?", Eren stepped forward--

Hosuh whirled to him as his features tensed, with a violent glare by the side of his eye and an ambiguous grimace covered in shadow.

"This is...", the silver-haired teen's voice broke, like how his heart seemed to break at the seams. "This is just...! Haha!"

One of the titans had messy blonde hair and patient eyes. The other had slicked-back hair and a devilish grin.

It was _them_.

It was...

There was no doubt about it.

This is so _cruel_.

Hosuh sunk into the floor, hands covering his face, breaking into hysterical laughter.

Hange, Eren, Reiner, and Annie exchanged looks, not knowing what to do about this. Taking the initiative, Reiner went closer to the teen. "Hosuh...san--"  
  
The silver-haired teen's shoulders and arms suddenly went limp, and with eyes rolling to the back of his head, Hosuh fell.

Screams, shouts, and worried yells echoed in his ears.

The last thing he felt was getting caught in the arms of a warm person with wide shoulders-- _Reiner_ \--before strength left his body and he blacked out.

He didn't know anything anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Small Trivia: Pau retrieved Jamie and the book back then before the police came along, and Bella and Pau convinced everyone else in their town to keep silent about the kid, so nobody knew that Jamie is a survivor from the Llyne tragedy.
> 
> But hey, since Sawney and Beane are there, I decided to make them have larger roles in the story so yeet--
> 
> Meanwhile, let's all hope Hosuh recovers well from this ;-;
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! More will be revealed next chapter, too! 
> 
> Please leave a comment or a kudos if you enjoyed this chapter, everyone, and see you all on the next one! Seeya! ^v^

**Author's Note:**

> (Lmao how do I put tags that aren't in suggestions lol) 
> 
> Hello! So, um, this is my first fanfic here, and I really hope you'll like it!
> 
> This is a fic that I came up with a friend, and yes it's a Danplan x Attack on Titan crossover hehe
> 
> Remember guys, no drama here lol
> 
> Daniel, Stephen and the others will show up here later on tho, don't worry
> 
> And I hope you guys are prepared, because it's going to be one heck of a ride lol
> 
> So, hope you guys enjoyed! See you all on the next part!


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